re Re: MDDM Ch. 66 Stig's Tale: An Interpretation

[Doug Millison]

jbor:
>In all versions of the episode the "Skraelling" assaults the
>Norseman and tries to steal his weapon, and the
violence escalates from there.


M&D and the sagas are ambiguous, omitting the level of detail that would
support this reading -- it's not clear at all what happens *before* the
"Skraelling" tries to "seize his weapon" (633) :  maybe the "Skraelling"
was trying to avoid being hurt by the Northman's weapon? Maybe the
"Skraelling" just jumps out of nowhere and assaults the Northman to steal
his weapon?  Neither Pynchon nor the sagas show enough to know for sure.
After the initial blow-up, M&D does show the Northmen undertaking a
pre-emptive strike: "the Northmen decide not to wait their return, but to
go out to them, upon the Cape" (633),  Pynchon clearly describes the
Northmen pursuing and murdering the Skraellings.


>The earlier
>visit by Thorvald Ericksson, where Thorvald is eventually killed by a
>"Skraelling" arrow, explicitly portrays the Norsemen instigating violence
>against the Native Americans, so I'd imagine Pynchon deliberately chose to
>use the later, *peaceful* attempt to settle in Vineland for a purpose.


A history of violence and blood already exists between the two peoples when
Pynchon picks up the Vineland story. The "Skraellings" remember the
previous encounter and this time they want even the odds by getting weapons
that will enable them to defend themselves from enemies who have returned.
Pynchon calls this *second* Northmen-Skraelling encounter, America's
*first* act of murder.  What makes these second killings murder and not the
killings of the earlier visit? I think it's the pre-meditated, pre-emptive
nature of the attack by the Northmen this time; it's not self-defense,
after the initial blow-up the "Skraellings" run for their lives, the
Northmen *decide*  to pursue and kill them -- that's what Pynchon shows and
why he calls it  "murder", I think, in a novel that concerns itself quite a
bit with the law and legal terminology.


>It's not the act or
>the outcome they had planned; they did not arrive in Vineland with violent,
>imperialist intentions.


M&D doesn't offer enough evidence, imo, to support this, and history
contradicts it -- I don't think Pynchon provides enough insight to jump to
the conclusion that the Vikings did not have violent intentions in this
intance; au contraire, they were violent the first time, they're violent
this time, that's their pattern, and history tells a frightful story of
attacks, rape, pillage, murder, by the Northmen wherever they go.

As a whole, M&D does not revise the history that we know, of an America
that was invaded and colonized by Europeans who murder, infect with
disease, displace, and enslave the native inhabitants.  Pynchon may leave
the details of the earliest encounter of Europeans and Native Americans
ambiguous, leaving open the question of who started the violence that
continues for centuries, but the rest of the history is clear enough in M&D
-- the Native Americans fought back against the colonizers from time to
time, but the genocidal tendency that the Paxton Boys illustrate is what
prevailed. Pynchon doesn't revise that.

Stig's Ax and the weapons of the Northmen in Stig's tale recall the bladed
armor used to kill the Lambton Worm and the many generations of pain and
suffering that follow that violent encounter between Knight and Evil Other.



Here's an interesting version of events, told from what appears to be a
Native American perspective:

http://www.telusplanet.net/public/dgarneau/indian7.htm

"[...] 1006 The Skraeling (wretches or savages) arrived in the spring to
trade for weapons however Karlsefni traded with milk that the Dorset
appreciated.  Trading is cut short, as the Viking contends the Skraeling
are scared off by the cattle, especially the bull.  Future events suggest
the Vikings probably put the Dorset to the sword.  A second party of
Skraeling arrived three weeks later into a Viking ambush.  The Dorset
obviously did not expect this treatment as they are not prepared to do
battle and fought back with their fishing equipment.  The ambush failed and
the Dorset put the Viking to flight except fearless Fredydis, Lief
Eriksson's sister, and daughter of Erik the Red, who is pregnant at the
time.  Grabbing the dead Thorrand Snoorasson's sword, she pulled out her
breasts and slapped the sword on them and the Skraeling took flight and ran
to their boats thereby saving the day.  It is noteworthy that later the
Beothuk women, during times of stress, also barred their breasts and that
could have originated from this Viking encounter.  It is unlikely the
flight of the Skraeling is due to fear but rather out of respect for
motherhood.

In reality, the Dorset had the entire village of women and children at
their disposal but being peace loving by nature they would not want to harm
future trading relations.  The Viking is humiliated.  Karlsefni decided to
leave this place and headed back to the base camp.  On the way they
discovered five Skraeling sleeping and they killed them to restore their
honor.  Thorvald sailing in search of Thorhall came across nine sleeping
Skraeling, they killed eight and one escaped.  The next day, the Skraeling
retaliated and attacked the Viking ship, killing Thorvald Eriksson.

Thorfinn Karlsefni sailed to Hampten Bay and began to cut lumber when they
sighted a limping Beothuk and tried to catch him but he got away.  A large
number of Beothuk later appeared and began to trade.   Karlsefni reported
they traded red cloth.  The Norse aggressivenessiveness caused a fight to
break out and many Beothuk are killed before they fled into the woods.  On
the trip back to the Labrador coast they captured two Dorset children who
said their mother's name is Vaetilldi and their father's name is Uvaegi. 
They said they lived in holes or caves.  They also said there is a land on
the other side, opposite their country, where the inhabitants wore white
garments, yelled loudly and carried poles before them to which cloth is
attached.  The Viking believed they are the Westman who are previously
displaced from Iceland and Greenland.  The Westmen originally came from the
British Islands.

Thorvald sailed to Groswater Bay hoping to find Thorhall the Hunter.  He
and his men killed eight Dorsets and Thorvald was killed.

1007 Freydis and her brothers Helge and Finnbuggi make a trip to Vineland. 
Helgi and Finngogi arrived first and occupied Lief's house.  Thorvad and
Freydis Eriksson arrived and are not willing to share Lief's house, Freydis
taunted her husband to kill the brothers, which they did, but would not
kill the five women.  Freydis took an axe and did them in at Trinity Bay.

1008 Early in the spring, Freydis and her party sailed back to Greenland
and gave out the story that the brothers had decided to stay behind.  Lief
tortured three of her crew members to learn the truth but could not punish
his own sister so he laid a curse on her and all her offspring. [...]   "